The Franciscan Sisters of the Eucharist have waited patiently and excitedly for the rebuilding of their new chapel, located on their campus at 269 Finch Ave. in Meriden. The day has finally arrived. Aside from some landscaping and last-minute touches, construction is now complete. On Saturday, November 1st, Archbishop Leonard P. Blair and Jean-Louis Pierre Cardinal Tauran, President of the Vatican's Pontifical Council for Inter-religious Dialogue, and the cardinal who announced the election of Pope Francis to the world, will bless the new chapel at 10 a.m.

The chapel will accommodate 150 persons, which is 100 more seats than before. The journey toward building the chapel began when Cardinal Tauran visited the Franciscan Sisters from Rome in 2009. He celebrated Mass on Palm Sunday, and felt the space was overly crowded and too small to serve the spiritual needs of the sisters as a growing community. After the Mass, he suggested to the sisters that the chapel be rebuilt and said that he would help by making a donation to get things started. He vowed to come back for the blessing. Construction began 15 months ago, and the Cardinal has kept his promise by attending the blessing.

The front of the chapel is adorned in beautiful stone, with two large windows that face a picturesque landscape. The altar, from the former chapel, is uniquely designed with a metal base holding a globe symbolic of the Community's daily prayer for the needs of the world. A new, larger altar top is Roman stone and will be consecrated during the blessing. The sanctuary chairs, credence table, tabernacle shelf and ambo (lectern) are made of cherry wood that came from trees found on the campus property. This is actually the second rebuilding of the chapel. The original structure was destroyed by a fire in 1988 and another chapel was erected in 1989.

The project is being funded entirely by donations. The Franciscan Sisters have served in the Archdiocese of Hartford since 1970 and continue to grow as young women enter the Order to serve the Church as consecrated religious women.